Most people know that contact lenses are corrective devices that fit over the cornea of the eye to affect vision correction, but how many truly understand how they actually work?
Indeed, the actual process is as fascinating as it is complex.
Contact lenses in action
One of the more pressing questions in regards to how contact lenses work is how they manage to stay on the eye. There is a dual action that occurs with this process. The first aspect is the seating on the cornea. With soft contacts, the flexible material of the lens folds gently over the rounded cornea. The same process occurs with hard contacts only the actual contact with the cornea is not as close or as sealed as with hydrogels.
Once seated over the cornea our own natural teas and blinking motions helps keep the lens in place. Tears and blinking also keep common every day objects like dust and particles from landing on the contacts themselves. With repeated cleansing via lens specific eye drops, wear should be comfortable all day long.
Vision correction
So, how do contact lenses help improve an individual’s sight? The answer to this question depends on the type of prescription the individual has. For instance, a person with astigmatism may use toric contact lenses. Toric contact lenses work by staying seated in the eye as opposed to moving around like normal lenses do. It also is a little heavier at the “bottom” than other contact lenses so that the prescriptions align perfectly each time. This in turn helps correct the shape of the cornea which is off a bit in people with astigmatism.
The lens has two prescriptions in it (to cure near or farsightedness). The dual prescription will bend the light coming into the eye in such a way that it resolves the fuzziness that people with this particular corneal abnormality have.
For myopics (nearsighted individuals) the contact lenses will have a different shape, being thinner in the middle and thickening on the outer edges. Farsighted folks will get a lens that is thicker in the middle and thinner on the outer edges. These designs capture and retain light in different ways. Since vision has a lot to do with how the outer and inner workings of the eye responds to light, this is very significant.
That is why it is very important to follow the direction of usage when you wear contacts. For example, daily wear contacts may not be as durable as weekly or monthly ones. If you try to wear dailies for the same duration of weekly you may not be getting the full potential of your prescription as the shape of the contact lens has dramatically altered.
Follow instructions and you will always get the full benefits that come from wearing contact lenses.
Getting an all important eye exam
Of course, no contact lens in the world will work properly unless you have an optometrist or ophthalmologist evaluate your eyes so you can get the appropriate prescription. These eye specialists will perform a battery of diagnostic tests that will give them some indication of how well you eye functions under certain circumstances.
Once determining what is needed to correct your vision the doctor will assign a prescription to you that may or may not change over time. This is why annual exams are necessary, especially since sight degradation can be halted or even reversed with routine care.
Contact lenses are amazing creations and the way they work may not be as important as how we implement them in our daily lives.
When it comes to understanding the problems associated with your vision problems however, self diagnosis is not an option. There are many serious eye disorders that are mimicked by more innocuous ones. Don’t take chances with your sight-see a professional right way to determine what your and your eyes will need to be healthy and function at full capacity.